Citizens meet with Mayor

Kaaren Terpack doesn’t separate work from play, mainly because her jobs revolve around some… Kaaren Terpack doesn’t separate work from play, mainly because her jobs revolve around some of the most popular entertainment organizations in Pittsburgh.

She coordinates events for a restaurant and lounge in the Strip District, sells beats and tracks for a music recording company and designs her own clothing.

But when Terpack, 25, took the microphone last night at a question-and-answer session with Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, she had only one question for him:

“Why should I stay in this city?”

Although Terpack has four jobs, she only makes around $10,000 a year. She said that Pittsburgh’s entertainment industry suffers from a lack of funding, even with its high level of popularity.

Despite being raised in Pittsburgh, she said she has had enough of the city and wants to leave.

Terpack was just one of more than 100 people who gathered at the Union Project in Shadyside to ask Mayor Ravenstahl questions about his administration’s recent decisions and visions for Pittsburgh’s future.

The Pennsylvania League of Young Voters Education Fund, a non-partisan group that works to educate young people about politics and voting, sponsored the event.

Julia Nagle, the group’s operations coordinator, said the event was a good way for younger voters to become more familiar with political candidates and their policies.

“I think a lot of times students feel disenfranchised,” Nagle said. “They never get to ask [officials] a lot of questions.”

From 7:10 to 8 p.m., Mayor Ravenstahl answered questions from the leaders of various organizations and other members of the community that touched on issues ranging from the environment to the building of a new arena Downtown.

When Luqman Abdus asked Ravenstahl what he planned to do to keep young people in the city and stressed the need for increased diversity in Pittsburgh, the room erupted in applause.

Ravenstahl, who became the youngest mayor after his predecessor died of brain cancer in September, began by saying that he is trying to promote a new, younger image of Pittsburgh.

“I want to change the image of us as an old, smoky city,” Ravenstahl said, who hopes that a proposed $3 billion investment in Downtown will attract younger people.

After the national attention that Pittsburgh received once the young mayor took office, Ravenstahl said he was able to promote the city’s medical centers, biotech centers and universities.

“It’s an opportunity that has never come before,” Ravenstahl said, “and I plan to run with it.”

Nevertheless, Abdus remained unconvinced. A 31-year-old resident of the South Side who has lived in Pittsburgh his entire life, Abdus feels that the city has always had a problem retaining its youth.

He mainly feels that this problem stems from a kind of close-mindedness that many Pittsburgh officials seem to have. He feels that other cities in America, such as Houston and Charlotte, N.C., have more entrepreneurship opportunities and show more support for their art communities.

Terpack, who plans to move to Miami, also said that many people in Pittsburgh can be close-minded. She said the city has trouble retaining its young residents and attracting other people.

“People from Pittsburgh are very content with the way things are,” she said. “They are happy living in their neighborhoods, drinking their beer, watching the Steelers and working minimum-wage jobs. And I respect that, but people my age want something more.”